He Shouldn't Be Alone
by Kristy LeeKl
Summary: A girl with wavering faith asks the Doctor to take her to the Bible lands to meet Jesus and renew her faith.
1. Prologue

**A/N I own copies of Doctor Who and the Bible, but not the rights to the story.**

"Anywhere in time and space. Your call!" the pinstriped Doctor said with a big grin on his face.

Hope's smile faltered. Indeed, the Doctor and Hope have been traveling to every planet they (or at least, the Doctor) could think of. Each planet had their own customs, such as Animax where each humanoid-dog owned a cat they would hunt with, and their own religions, such as one that Hope couldn't remember the name of, but the people there believe the universe was sneezed out of their deity's nose. Hope wrinkled her nose at the memory. It was disgusting. She brought her Bible along with her, but the planet already had their own version of the Bible. To be honest, though, their Bible was pretty convincing too.

Hope took a deep breath. "Um…" she closed her eyes to stop a stray tear. "I…I…" She tried again. "How about Israel, Earth, 32 AD?"

A shadow passed over the Doctor's face before he spoke nonchalantly, "Oh you don't want to go there! It's hot and humid and women your age weren't treated well! Why don't I take you to Cleopatronis! On that planet, women own everything from the throne to little shops. The women are even the ones who get to propose to their boyfriends. No more waiting on the guys and their cold feet! Mind you, the men get vicious if you don't propose in a timely manner."

Hope looked at the Doctor suspiciously while a bit heartbroken. What is wrong with 32 AD? She itched to open her Bible right now, but it was in her room of the TARDIS. Did she have the time right?

She tried to keep her voice level as she said, "Israel, Earth, 32 AD. You said it was my call. This is where I want to go."

The Doctor sort of deflated as he walked to the console and began to roll wheels, pull levers, and check his screen. The TARDIS wheezed to life as it crashed through the time vortex. The Doctor and Hope had to hold onto the metal bars to avoid falling to the floor.

Then all at once, the crashing halted. The Doctor checked the screen, then walked to the doors. He wore a stern look on his face as he opened the door for Hope. "Israel, Earth, 32 AD. Hope, welcome to the Bible lands."

 **A/N I've had this plot bunny hopping around in my head for awhile. I have a very special moment planned for a later chapter so keep watching. Yes I will be respectful of Bible, since I personally wouldn't read anything Bible-related that isn't respectful.**

 **For my readers worried about my Hunger Games/Bible crossover, I will continue as soon as I get more submissions.**

 **Please read and review!**


	2. Getting Acclimated

**A/N Your patience has been rewarded with a longer chapter. Disclaimer: I own copies of the Bible and Doctor Who DVDs, but not the rights themselves.**

Hope stepped out into the bright light reflecting on the sand. Sand stretched out for about a mile in every direction. Hope scanned the horizon and saw a grove nearby. Hope marveled at the scenery before her. "Where are we in Israel?" she asked, looking back at the Doctor.

The Doctor went to check his monitor. "We are in the region of Galilee, and that little grove over there is Bethsaida. Though 'grove' wouldn't be the right word. It's more of a town really…"

Hope shook her head humorously at the Doctor's ramblings and snuck out the door. She slowly closed the door behind her before running at full speed to Bethsaida. Running through the desert was tiresome, but Hope wore a light t-shirt that reflected heat and some capris. Unfortunately, her running shoes were starting to collect sand, so she had to stop every so often to empty them.

Eventually, after 12 minutes of running (why didn't the Doctor park closer?), Hope reached the outskirts of town. She rested in a shaded alleyway to catch her breath. She gave herself a minute before stepping out into the brightly-lit street.

The people walked about in what Hope could only describe as robes with sandals. Hope saw vendor after vendor selling pots and cloths. The people bought, sold, and bartered. On every side, Hope could hear the sounds of trade from the men and gossip from the women.

Hope was so absorbed in the atmosphere that she almost didn't hear someone yell, "Harlot!" She turned around and realized a man in what would be called "designer" robes today was pointing at her! She wondered why the man had said that until she looked down at her own clothes. Her t-shirt, capris, and shoes made her look naked compared to everyone here.

She didn't waste another moment. She took off down the street with the man in designer robes and a few of his friends chasing after her. She dodged people, carts, stands, even upsetting a few before a something yanked her arm into a new alleyway. Hope was so startled that she let out a scream. Another hand covered her mouth. Overcome with fear, Hope fainted.

"…period clothes. We can go back to the TARDIS later, but for now, we will wear these." Hope felt something slip around her neck as she came to.

She and the Doctor were still in the alleyway she fainted in. She shook her head trying to remember. "There were some people after me, then someone dragged me to this alleyway," she spoke groggily.

"Right. Sorry, that was me," the Doctor quipped. Hope turned around and looked at the Doctor a bit bewildered. "Hello!" he said with a smile and a wave. "I believe the man that was after you is what people call a scribe."

Hope chuckled and shook her head at the Doctor's antics before looking down at the new necklace she wore. It seemed to be a key with a small motherboard on it. "What is this?"

"Ah. That is a perception filter. You see, the key is actually a TARDIS key. As you know, the TARDIS has a Chameleon Circuit which helps it blend in-"

"No it doesn't!" said Hope with a little sneer.

"Well it did," the Doctor continued. "That little bit of circuitry attached to the key will allow us to harness the Chameleon Circuit so we can blend in. So long as we don't draw attention to ourselves, of course."

Hope looked apprehensive, but allowed the Doctor to pull her up to her feet. Together, they walked back out to the busy street. They walked past some of the carts she tipped over during her escape. She longed to help them, but, of course, did her best not to draw attention to herself. She was in enough trouble already.

Most of the men were still trading and most of the women were still gossiping. One conversation in particular caught Hope's attention.

"My brother, Benjamin, from across the sea has gone mad! He told me he saw a prophet go into the desert many furlongs south from here. He is going to follow Him, the poor soul."

"I heard that He made a blind man see and a dumb man talk near Capernaum! I think He may be more than a prophet if He can do that. Where did you say your brother will see Him?"

"Oh no not you too! Well, I suppose someone better keep an eye on Benjamin. He went 80 furlongs into the desert south of here."

The women parted ways with one of them heading south with a determined look on her face. The other woman looked like her feathers were ruffled as she went to talk to another ready ear.

Hope stopped the Doctor in his tracks and whispered, "How long is a furlong?"

The Doctor whispered, "One fifth of a kilometer or one eight of a mile, if you'd prefer."

Hope thought for a moment. "So that is sixteen kilometers or ten miles. It looks to still be morning. We can make it!"

The Doctor's eyes went wide. "No. No no no no no!" His protests fell on deaf ears as Hope pulled the Doctor south out of Bethsaida and back into the desert.

 **A/N I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Thank you, Lady of Light77, for your kind words. I hope I won't disappoint you or any of my readers.**

 **It took a lot of research on both sides of the story. Fortunately, the back of my Bible has a Harmony of the Gospels which is really helpful when it comes to the order of events throughout the books. I plan on incorporating all four books. Would you readers like me to reference the verses/events I used in the author's notes? All you have to do is ask.**

 **As always, please read and review!**


	3. Feeding the Five Thousand

**A/N Inspiration for this chapter came from Matthew 14:15-21; Mark 6:35-44; Luke 9:12-17; John 6:5-15.**

It seemed as though Hope wasn't the only one eager to see the "prophet". It seemed as though Benjamin brought a few friends with him…a few hundred friends. Hope and the Doctor quickly fell into an even pace with the crowd, the perception filters allowing them to go unnoticed.

Within a few hours, the crowd reached a grassy area of the desert where a small boat just landed. Thirteen men had recently disembarked from the boat. These are the people that seemed to draw the crowd in. Most of the group seemed a little surprised, but the man who seemed the wisest and kindest was not surprised at all.

The crowd pushed themselves closer to the man, leaving Hope and the Doctor in the back. Hope longed to reach the man, but couldn't make it past the crowd. In a bit of a huff, Hope asked the Doctor, "Just how many people are there here?!"

The Doctor got on his tiptoes to scan the crowd, squinting a bit. When he was finished, he leveled his feet and whispered to Hope, "If you are counting just men, as people during this time do, I'd say five thousand. If you counted woman and children, that number is closer to seven thousand."

Hope stood agape. If the Doctor's counting is correct, which usually is given his superior Time Lord brainpower, then Hope knew exactly what was going to happen! The sides of Hope's mouth turned upwards into a huge smile, and she began jumping up and down in excitement. "I don't believe it! Any minute now, Jesus is going to feed the whole crowd using just a few loaves of bread and a little fish! And we get to be a part of it!"

The Doctor looked at Hope and rebuked her. "That part is not for a few hours, so calm down and don't draw attention to yourself!"

Hope stopped jumping and wondered aloud, "What are we going to do until then?"

"Oi! I wasn't the one who dragged us out here! You think of something since you're the eager beaver. Just don't draw attention to us or these perception filters will be useless."

Hope let out a sigh and looked around. After the initial arrival, the crowd began to loosen and form groups of people that stood and chatted. Some of them even sat down to rest their weary feet. Indeed, it had been a long walk for some. As Hope listened, she learned that some of these even came from Beersheba. If Hope remembered correctly, Beersheba is south of Jerusalem. Everyone came on foot, too, since Hope didn't see any animals around.

Hope then got a hopeful look in her eye. "Maybe we can go see Jesus now." She looked at the Doctor pleadingly.

The Doctor considered it. "Why not? Let's meet the man of the hour."

Hope and the Doctor pushed their way through the crowd a bit more easily this time towards the boat where they last saw Jesus. When they made it to the shore, Jesus and His apostles were no longer there. Confused, Hope looked back toward the crowd, but couldn't find Him.

Hope started to panic. "Where is He?"

The Doctor scanned the crowd, too, and then pointed, "There He is. Looks like He's talking to some of the members of this little welcoming committee, so we best not get too close."

Hope and the Doctor wandered over to where Jesus was standing. The untrained eye would think this was a normal man because He shared many physical characteristics as the crowd did. Even so, it would be hard not to notice that this particular man had an aura about Him that made most people feel safe and draw nearer.

That's just what Hope did. Despite the Doctor's warnings, Hope drew closer than she intended. His back was to her, so Hope felt confident in not being noticed. She got to overhear the conversation He was having.

"What is it you want?" Jesus asked a man who was laying on the ground with what looked to be a twisted ankle.

"My Lord, I twisted my ankle halfway coming here, but continued when I heard others tell of Your healing power," the man winced in pain. "I ask that you please heal me!"

Hope couldn't see His face, but she could guess that He was smiling. Jesus lifted up His head and began to speak to the crowd beyond the crippled man, teaching, "This man has some of the greatest faith for he has not seen My signs, yet believes. Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." The crowd murmured. Jesus looked back down at the man and told him, "Your faith has made you well. Stand up." Immediately, the man got to his feet, his ankle looking much better.

Jesus continued in this manner for several hours with Hope and the Doctor following at a now safe distance behind.

—

The sun was low in the sky when Hope's stomach started to make its discomfort known. She hadn't eaten since before she left the TARDIS. "It must be time to eat soon!" she cried. The crowd, although they didn't hear her, voiced basically the same complaint. Some of them even started to walk back north to Bethsaida.

Presently, the apostles approached Jesus and said, "Send the multitude away, that they may go into the surrounding towns and country, and lodge and get provisions; for we are in a deserted place here."

Jesus, with a gleam in His eye, told one, "You give them something to eat. Where shall we buy bread, that these may eat?"

Another apostle said, "Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give them something to eat?"

The one He spoke to replied, "Two hundred denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them that every one of them may have a little."

But Jesus said to them, "How many loaves do you have? Go and see."

The little group looked at each other as if silently asking if they brought any loaves. When it was obvious that none of them had bread, they dispersed to search the crowd for food. Hope looked too. She knew that somewhere in the crowd was a little boy with a meal just large enough for one family. In fact, she spotted him about fifty paces to her left, right before one of the apostles called out to him. The little boy followed the apostle back to Jesus.

The rest of the group noticed and came back to Jesus, too. The apostle that brought the boy (why can't they wear name tags?) said, "There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two small fish, but what are they among so many?"

Jesus still had a gleam in His eye when He said, "Bring them to me, and make the people sit in groups of fifty."

The apostles looked at each other and shrugged as they began to carry out their instructions. It took awhile, considering there was a lot of complaining about rank, but eventually about one hundred and forty groups were made.

Hope and the Doctor sat in a nearby group and watched as Jesus looked up to heaven and gave the blessing, "My dear Father in Heaven, hallowed be Thy name! Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on Earth as is in Heaven. We thank You for this food You have provided. Please allow this food to nourish all of our bodies for Your service. We ask this in Your Holy Name. Amen"

Jesus broke the bread. A few of the apostles went back to the boat to grab some baskets in which Jesus put the broken bread into. Jesus then blessed and distributed the fish to the baskets, too.

The apostles went in separate directions to distribute the food. When one of them reached Hope and the Doctor's group, the apostle stuck his hand in the basket he was carrying and drew out a piece of barley bread to give to one of the group members to pass around. He reached in and grabbed more and more pieces of bread than Hope noticed Jesus put in there.

Hope marveled at this, but joined the others in passing around the bread. Then Hope eventually took a piece for herself. She took a bite of the barley bread and grimaced. She looked at the Doctor and said, "Barley does not taste like I hoped it would. Maybe I'm just spoiled to buttered rolls in the TARDIS kitchen."

The Doctor quietly chuckled while digging through his coat pockets. He pulled out a yo-yo, some playing cards, what looked to be the Bill of Rights, and some other random stuff before finding what he was looking for: a small covered dish of butter with a butter knife.

"Seriously?" Hope bewildered at the Doctor while taking the dish and using the butter knife to smear butter over her next bite of barley bread. Her next bite caused her to moan with pleasure. "Now that is good bread!"

Then came a basket of fish. The same process occurred as the with the bread, but Hope declined a bite. "I don't eat sushi," she said as she watched people eat it raw. "What kind of fish is that anyway?"

The Doctor took a bite of his fish, thought a moment, then swallowed. "That is an _Oreochromis aureus_ , but you would probably recognize it as blue tilapia. The people here call it _musht_ which, translated from Arabic, means 'comb'. Funnily enough, this blue tilapia will eventually become known as 'Jordan St. Peter's fish'." The Doctor offered Hope a bite of his fish.

Hope looked at the Doctor's fish and said thoughtfully, "If it's tilapia, it can't be that bad." She shook her head, "But I still won't eat it raw."

The Doctor sighed and pulled out his sonic screwdriver. He pointed it at the fish in his hand and it began to smoke in a few seconds. "There. I sped up the molecules to heat it up. It should be cooked now."

Hope gingerly pulled a piece of fish off the bone before dropping it. She did her best not to cry out in pain and draw attention to herself.

The Doctor scoffed, "Well of course it's hot! I just cooked it!"

After shaking the pain out of her hand, Hope blew on the fish to cool it, then tore off another piece using her shirt. She brought it to her mouth and took a bite. Hope nodded in approval. The Doctor smiled.

While they ate, they listened to the rumors circulating in the group. The most interesting one to Hope revolved around John the Baptist.

"I can't believe I get to meet him! John the Baptist! I am in the presence of John the Baptist!" said an excited woman.

"No you aren't! John the Baptist was beheaded a few weeks ago. I was there! King Herod ordered it himself!" said an indignant man.

"Oh," pondered the excited woman, "then he must be back from the dead! That can be the only explanation!"

"Foolish woman!" the indignant man cried. "It's not possible for a man to rise from the grave! There's just no way!"

Hope chuckled. She knew they were both wrong. She knew what would happen, and she planned to witness it.

Then she paused. John's beheading was recent? That means that Jesus recently heard about it. Hope looked toward Jesus who was near. He was kind and compassionate all day. Not once did she hear Him weep. Jesus' eyes were focused on the crowd but Hope's eyes were focused on His. She could see that behind the kindness was sorrow on multiple levels: sorrow for the sheep without a shepherd and sorrow for His own loss. Hope remembered that John the Baptist and Jesus were distantly related, but exact relation, she didn't know.

Hope still wore a look of sorrow when Jesus commanded His apostles, "Gather up the fragments that remain, so that nothing is lost."

The baskets came around again to pick up the scraps of food. Hope quickly recovered her frown, picked up the bit of fish she dropped, which was cold by now, and put it in the basket. She looked back at Jesus who was overseeing the collection. Presently, the apostles brought back twelve baskets filled above the brim with scraps.

The crowd around her began to murmur, "This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world." The murmurs grew louder and louder until people began pushing and shoving towards Him to forcibly make Him king.

Jesus shook His head and walked off. Hope begged the Doctor to follow Him, but when she looked back to where He was, He was gone.

 **A/N Sorry for the long wait. Every chapter requires research so I can be as historically accurate as possible. If you have questions or spot an inaccuracy, please let me know!**

 **As you probably have guessed, Hope represents a Bible student who has been to Sunday School and knows most of the Bible stories, but hasn't done much outside research. The Doctor, on the other hand, represents someone who not only attends Sunday School, but also does extensive, in-depth, independent research. Remember, this is from Hope's POV so she may forget some things.**

 **Guest: I'm glad you loved it!**

 **kevin: I hope you think this chapter is even more epic than the last, if that's even possible!**

 **Please read and review!**

 **P.S. I'm still waiting on more submissions for my SYOT. I tend to update a day or two after each submission!**


	4. Walking on Water

**A/N Inspiration for this chapter is from Matthew 14:22-33, Mark 6:45-52, and John 6:16-21.**

The crowd dispersed soon after His disappearance, with most of them heading back to Bethsaida. Hope and the Doctor stayed in pace with the crowd, although heading in a more north-east direction, back to the TARDIS. Since they were near the back of the crowd, Hope was able to look behind her at what was left of the small group that came on a boat. They were packing up the baskets from the meal and getting ready to set sail again.

Hope looked down and faced forward again. Beside her, the Doctor was rambling about their next adventure.

"How about we head to your future next? The Luna University in the 51st century boasts the biggest human library since the Library of Alexandria! I've contributed to over half of those books, though I did ask the authors for my name to be left out. You can study anything you want-"

"Doctor?" Hope finally spoke up.

The Doctor looked down at Hope and asked, "yeah?"

Hope struggled to form her sentences. "I'm not ready to go yet. I still want to see Jesus walk on water which is tonight…" Hope trailed off.

A shadow fell over the Doctor's eyes. The Doctor let out a sigh and said, "Hope, we cannot stay. It was already a big risk to walk around even with the perception filters on. Even turning over those carts earlier can have a big impact on the timeline. These are fixed points in time we are messing with. We cannot risk anymore…" The Doctor stopped lecturing when he noticed tears forming in Hope's eyes. A few minutes passed in silence.

He could hear her still softly sobbing as they reached the TARDIS doors. The Doctor sighed again and did his best to put on a happy face.

"You know? The TARDIS can make this a really quick trip. She won't like it though, will you, Old Girl?"

The TARDIS groaned in reply.

* * *

The TARDIS materialized hovering over the raging waters of the Sea of Galilee. The TARDIS did not like to fly in a single space, especially during a fierce lightning storm such as this. To remedy that, the Doctor had his left hand pushing down a lever with all his might, his right hand keeping a dial twisted, and his right foot pressing a button on the next panel over. He looked silly and in pain at the same time. Nevertheless, he held this position so Hope could look out the TARDIS door to see if she could spot Jesus performing yet another miracle.

Hope shielded her eyes from the coming rain. She could barely see a thing! She was on the brink of giving up when she spotted the silhouette of a man on the water. With the heavy rain, it was easy why the apostles thought He was a ghost in a few minutes.

"I see Him!" Hope yelled to the Doctor over the thunder. "He's walking on water like I said!"

"Great!" the Doctor yelled back through gritted teeth. "So we can-"

The next few events happened in the span of about ten seconds:

One Mississippi: Lightning struck the TARDIS.

Two Mississippi: The TARDIS jolted. Hope rocked back, starting to lose her balance.

Three Mississippi: Hope let go of the door frame, flailing her arms in attempt to regain balance.

Four Mississippi: Hope's shoes tipped over the threshold as the TARDIS rocked forward.

Five Mississippi: Hope attempted to grab the doorframe again before falling completely out, screaming at the top of her lungs.

Six Mississippi: The Doctor cried, "HOOOOOPE!"

Seven Mississippi: The Doctor let go of the console as he faintly heard a splash.

Eight Mississippi: The Doctor started running to the door.

Nine Mississippi: The TARDIS, finally free of the Doctor's control, closed the door just when the Doctor reached it.

Ten Mississippi: The TARDIS dematerialized, leaving the Doctor in a panic and Hope in the water.

Theoretically, with all the running Hope did with the Doctor, Hope had legs strong enough to swim. The problem was that with the screaming, her mouth was open when she hit the water. She closed her mouth at Nine Mississippi, but that still means she took on a lot of water. Also, her eyes closed reflexively underwater, so it was hard to tell which way was up, with her head spinning from the shock of impact. These problems were bad enough in calm water. This was merciless water currents, pushing her from all sides.

After the initial shock, Hope pushed forward blindly, hoping she was swimming in the right direction: up. Unfortunately, she picked down. By the time she realized her mistake and course corrected, her lungs started to give out. She almost reached the surface when she had to take a breath. Water filled her lungs and she began to sink again. Her body subjected to the water. In one last act of defiance, Hope thought "God…help."

She thought she felt a hand grab hers as she left consciousness.

 **A/N Well that was unexpected. It just sort of happened. Sorry it's so short. I seem to have the end of chapters in mind, but stumped as to how to get there. Oh well, I like how this one turned out.**

 **Review Responses:**

 **AustinBaker888: Thank you for your confidence in me and my writing! Researching the atmosphere and the Doctor's knowledge has been excellent Bible study for me! I hope you like the wrench I threw into this perfectly peaceful plot. I still have a few more wrenches left to throw at the worst moments haha.**


	5. Many Miracles Performed (Genesaret)

**A/N I own copies of Doctor Who and the Bible, but not the rights to them. This chapter was inspired by Matt. 14:34-36 and Mark 6:53-56.**

* * *

Hope's eyelids fluttered. She was laying on something soft. Hope considered opening her eyes all the way, but the gentle rocking coaxed her back to sleep. She was vaguely aware of someone lifting her head and gently setting it down on something hard. There were various voices as her "bed" rocked a little more violently until the voices faded and the rocking ceased.

Hope chose this time to wake up. She had fallen asleep on a boat. She had no idea how she got there.

She peered over the edge of the boat which had landed on a lush, green pasture, even more marvelous than the one she came from. Hope never thought such scenery existed in the Bible Lands, but she was pleasantly mistaken.

When she saw Jesus and His disciples in the distance, Hope scrambled out of the boat and started running to the group, her perception filter bouncing against her chest.

As she drew near, a crowd seemed to have formed out of nowhere calling out "Heal my son!" "My father is on his deathbed. Will You help him?" "If only I may touch your robe that I may be healed," and so on.

The crowd was thin at the moment, so Hope got to watch Jesus miraculously heal again. However, there was always someone in front of her as some people came carried on stretchers and left walking.

This continued as they approached the city. Hope looked and saw a sign that labeled the town as Gennesaret. Here, many people jumped up from where they sat in the street, in their houses, and even on the rooftops, and created an even larger crowd.

"The Prophet is here!"

"Go tell Johnathon to bring his blind daughter!"

"These scars will finally heal!"

"Go tell the people of Capernaum, Chorazin, and Magdala! They will want to come!"

The noise was deafening, even worse than the feasting from yesterday! There were more people at the feast, granted, but that was out in the open. The houses and shops in the town created an enclosed space which made the sound come back quicker.

Hope covered her ears. As soon as the new crowd started to form, she lost track of Jesus. She took a step forward but was pushed back by the masses. Still determined, she glanced around the buildings. Nearest to her was a stack of baskets leaning against what seemed to be someone's house. Hope used these to climb to the thatched roof of that house.

The roof of the house, Hope discovered, seemed to be an extra living space. What seemed to be bedrolls were neatly placed in the middle while pieces of pottery and baskets were strewn haphazardly around them. From this vantage point, Hope could see that she was not the only one who had this idea. Others had climbed their rooftops to get a better look at Jesus. A few of them ran from rooftop to rooftop, which seemed like a simple parkour.

Hope smiled to herself. If they could do it, so could she! How else was she going to get closer to Jesus?

She picked a roof to jump to, took a few steps back, and started running. When she reached the edge, she jumped. For one horrible moment, Hope didn't think she'd make it. She did, though, face-planting in the thatch of the new roof.

Hope sat up, sputtering out thatch she had gotten in her mouth. "Ow," she moaned. Her hands had become splintered which she hadn't thought possible. "I hope no one saw that," she muttered.

Shaking her head, Hope gazed out into the city. The crowd had gotten larger, with the center growing more and more distant. She sighed. The only way to get to Jesus was by subjecting herself to more parkour.

Hope groaned as she got to her feet. Her legs wobbled, but she managed to steady herself. The next roof was a little bit further away than her first jump. There were other roofs that were closer, but they would make her go the wrong way.

Hope made a running jump. As before, there was a second when Hope's faith faltered. Her hands reached for the new roof and she was able to grasp it, before the overhang gave way, leaving her with only clumps of thatch in her hands and nothing for her feet. The next second found her left foot breaking through a basket full of grain, her right foot hitting nothing, and her body falling backward.

Her back was sore after she landed. Her head hitting the ground didn't knock her out this time, but she did have a severe headache. "Oohhh…" she moaned. She shifted her weight so she was sitting up. Her hip was sore, but that wasn't the biggest problem.

When Hope tried using her right foot to kick the basket off her left foot, she let out a cry of pain that she quickly muffled. Glancing around, Hope saw no one noticed her in this alley. Good. She looked down at her foot and saw a small red stain on her sock. Hope took off her shoe carefully and gently pulled off her sock. What caused the stain was just a scratch, but that couldn't be what's causing all the pain. No, her ankle was swelling and bruising over. Simply touching it caused a jolt of pain through her leg.

There wasn't much she could do about it. Sighing, Hope put her shoe back on loosely and then worked the basket off with her hands. Once her left foot was free, she used the basket as a prop to get herself up. On her feet, she shifted her weight to her left side, and took a step. She fell down almost immediately on her face. "Ow." Her head felt like it would split apart (where is the Doctor when you need him?).

Hope laid like that for a few minutes. She couldn't go on like this. In fact, she almost resigned to her fate when she spotted a tall, crooked stick leaning against the wall a few feet ahead of her. Hope sighed, pushed herself up again, and stumbled, leaning against the same wall, toward the stick. Coming closer, she discover that the stick came to her shoulders and had a few red and brown markings all over it.

Hope picked it up and pushed herself off the wall, now balanced with her newly-found walking stick. With new determination, she walked out into the crowd slowly, considering her head was still feeling like it was splitting.

The crowd was thinner now. Panic gripped Hope because she realized Jesus would be long gone by now. Going as fast as she dared in her state, Hope followed the general direction of the crowd.

Hope and the crowd walked a long time, circulating around Jesus. As soon as one person touched the hem of Jesus' garment, that person moved out of the way to let someone else touch him. This allowed Hope to hobble closer. Even so, she had to take breaks by leaning on buildings.

No one noticed. No one cared.

* * *

It was evening before Jesus and his disciples had a bit of solitude outside the town. They sat down and made camp.

Hope seized this opportunity to finally sit down where they were gathered. She used the walking stick to ease herself onto the ground next to a tree a few feet behind the nearest disciple. The blood rushing down to her ankle made her socks even redder. Gingerly, Hope took off her shoe, then her sock to assess the damage. No progress had been made.

Looking around, she saw some small sticks she could use to create a splint. She picked up two sticks then tried to think what she could use for a wrap for the splint.

Looking around camp, Hope saw that the disciples got a fire going. Someone in town gave them some fish that Peter was currently cooking. The other disciples were lounging around, resting their feet.

Hope despaired. "There's gotta be something I could use," she muttered to herself. She looked down at her sore ankle. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed her discarded shoe. Her eyes widened. "Lace," she whispered.

Hope quickly unlaced her shoe and wrapped the shoelace around her ankle and makeshift splints. Wincing in pain, Hope carefully laid her injured limb straight out in front of her. A moan of small relief escaped her lips.

When the food was ready, Jesus called His disciples together. The disciples bowed their heads while Jesus lifted His head toward Heaven.

"My Father who lives in Heaven, hallowed be Thy Name! May Your kingdom come and Your will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven! We thank You, Father, for this meal that has been provided for us. Please let us use this food to nourish our bodies so we may do Your will. We ask this in Your Name, Amen."

The man whom Hope suspected to be Andrew moved the fish off the fire and passed bits to his fellow disciples. Hope looked on with a growling stomach. This would be the first meal she has had today. This may even be the first time Jesus ate today. Hope didn't know.

Hope considered crawling over to the fire and grabbing some fish for herself, but hesitated. Would she be able to do it without drawing attention to herself?

There was a small movement in the little crowd. A little piece of fish was broken off and placed on a rock outside the circle. The disciples didn't notice, but Hope did.

Hope tilted her head in confusion. Why would someone do that? Is it a bad part of the fish? Hope stared at it in the flickering firelight. Nothing was wrong with it.

The food beckoned Hope to come closer. Pushing herself off the tree, she was careful not to move her injury too much as crawled toward the scrap. She picked up the fish with her shirt and took a bite. Hope recognized it as blue tilapia, the same fish as before. It seems to be a really popular fish.

The scrap, surprisingly, filled her up. Hope fell asleep listening to the sound of Jesus giving another lesson.

* * *

In the middle of the night, a blue box appeared on a nearby hill. No one saw the Doctor step out except Jesus, who was still awake. The Doctor made his way down to where Hope was sleeping, but stopped in his tracks when Jesus made eye contact with him. Jesus shook his head. The Doctor looked grim. Hope needed to come back with him!

Jesus shook his head again with understanding and a bit of sorrow. Unsmiling, the Doctor nodded and walked back to the TARDIS and dematerialized, leaving Hope with Jesus.

Not that she wanted to leave…

* * *

 **A/N Sorry for the long wait. These passages were relatively generic, so I had to find a way to expand them into a full chapter.**

 **Review responses!**

 **Shadowntr: You asked me to add events that were not in the Bible, but still biblical. I hope this is what you meant.**

 **chrissymama: I'm glad I got you hooked!**

 **Starman64: I hope this story will encourage you to do research too!** **Yes, I did research before starting this chapter. Yes, there was a kind of parkour at the time. Yes, Gennesaret was part of the Fertile Crescent which is why it looks so beautiful.**

 **As always, please read and review!**


	6. Bread of Life

**A/N This chapter is inspired by John 6:25-71.**

Hope woke up with the apostles at the crack of dawn. A few of them yawned before discussing breakfast plans. Jesus reminded them of the feast. One apostle (still no name tags) volunteered to go back to the boat to get one of the baskets of scraps. While that apostle was gone, another apostle relit the fire which had gone out during the night. The others started cleaning up camp.

There wasn't much for Hope to do without giving herself away. Instead, she sat up and unwrapped the shoelace holding the splint in place. The swelling in her ankle had gone down a little, but when she touched the spot, she still winced in pain.

By the time she put the splint back on with her sock over it for more protection, the missing apostle arrived with the basket of scraps. Jesus had everyone sit down so He could bless the food.

Once the food was blessed, everyone grabbed a handful of scraps from the basket. Some of those who grabbed the fish put the fish on a stick and held it over the fire. Hope giggled a little. It reminded her of roasting hotdogs over a fire at home. At least something is familiar.

Hope crawled around the group to get to the basket and stuck her hand in when no one was looking. Her hand closed in on some bread. Hope sighed. There was no butter this time. She closed her eyes and took a bite. It didn't suit her taste, but it filled her.

Breakfast was soon over. Since the apostles packed up camp earlier, they all stood up and following Jesus who was leading them to another town.

Hope scrambled back to the tree where she left her walking stick. She used the walking stick and the tree to push herself up to standing position. She panted at the effort. Looking at the group, who were already a good distance away, Hope hobbled to catch up.

* * *

At the gates to the new town, Jesus walked right in and seemed to make a beeline to a beautifully white, decently sized, two story building. Those in the town who were already awake started following Him as soon as they saw Him. Hope made sure to follow closely to Jesus so not to lose Him in the crowd again.

As they approached the beautiful building, another, larger crowd came in from the other side of town. Hope squinted and started to recognize some of them from the feast, especially the little boy who gave his lunch to the apostles.

Jesus continued into the beautiful building. Hope, following, staggered back, not only from her ankle, but also from the sheer beauty inside. This place seemed to Hope like a theater with a wide platform in front and rows of columns on either side creating balconies. Hope guessed that this was a temple or a synagogue.

Recovering from her awe, she realized that if she didn't hurry, she'd miss a good spot with the apostles. She hobbled to the front and off to the side.

Jesus made His way to the platform. The crowd was still coming in. Hope looked around and saw that there wasn't another female around. She started to panic. Was she not allowed in there? She wanted to hear Jesus!

Then she looked up. The ladies were in the synagogue, just in the balconies. Hope shook her head; she was not about to climb some stairs in her condition.

Everyone that wanted to come in seemed to have done so. Just as Jesus opened His mouth to speak, the crowd exclaimed, "Rabbi, when did You come here?"

Jesus answered them and said, "Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled."

A few members of the crowd looked a little guilty.

Jesus continued, "Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him."

The crowd looked excited about this new food, so they asked Jesus, "What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?"

Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent."

Therefore they said to Him, "What sign will You perform then, that we may see it and believe You? What work will You do?"

One of the people in the back had a proud voice when he said, "Our fathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'"

 _Hey, I remember that_ , Hope thought.

Then Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world."

The crowd became excited again and said, "Lord, give us this bread always."

Jesus sighed (and so did Hope behind Him), and said, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst."

The crowd looked confused. Some of them even started complaining. "Blasphemy," they whispered.

Jesus continued, "But I said to you that you have seen Me and yet do not believe. All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. This is the will of the Father who sent me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day. And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life and I will raise him up at the last day."

Hope clapped quietly at His speech. However, there were very few that agreed with her sentiments. She heard murmurs of disdain.

"Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How is it then that He says, 'I have come down from heaven'?" This idea quickly spread through the crowd.

Jesus had mercy on the crowd and therefore answered and said to them, "Do not murmur among yourselves. No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day."

This seemed to calm the crowd down, if only for a moment.

He continued, "It is written in the prophets, 'And they shall all be taught by God.' Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me. Not that anyone has seen the Father, except He who is from God; He has seen the Father.

Most assuredly, I say to you he who believes in Me has everlasting life. I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and are dead. This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world."

Hope watched as many jaws dropped. Do they get it now?

The crowd, after the initial shock, began to quarrel among themselves, saying, "How can this Man give us His flesh to eat?"

Hope facepalmed. Of course they didn't get it. They won't get it until the Last Supper or even the cross, maybe not even then.

Then Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me. This is the bread which came down from heaven — not as your fathers ate the manna, and are dead. He who eats this bread will live forever."

There were many in the audience that whined, saying, "This is a hard saying; who can understand it?"

Hope looked at them in sorrow. "I understand it," she whispered _._

Hope glanced at Jesus who looked back at the crowd in similar, although more subtle, sorrow. He said to them, "Does this offend you? What then if you should see the Son of Man ascend where He was before? It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life. But there are some of you who do not believe. Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father."

The crowd continued to whine and, one by one and group by group, they left the synagogue. Very few remained in the room, most of them being the twelve apostles. Hope stayed. A few other men mingled around the room, and a few women mingled around the balconies. Hope started to cry.

Then Jesus, with a few tears of His own, said to the twelve, "Do you also want to go away?"

Hope looked up. The one she recognized as Peter answered Him, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life." The twelve nodded. Peter continued, "Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."

The apostles smiled. Even Hope smiled.

That is, until Jesus answered them, "Did I not choose you, the twelve, and one of you is a devil?"

One of the apostles in the back shifted his feet and looked down. That one must be Judas Iscariot, Hope decided.

 **A/N I can't believe I haven't updated since August! It's been in my head but never typed out.**

 **They are in Capernaum now which is kinda like Jesus' base of operations. Hope is going to fly solo for awhile, and she has already messed up some, but it looks like she is keeping her head up!**

 **Disney fan5: Sorry for the delay! I hope this chapter is long enough to hold you over until next time!**

 **As always, please read and review!**


	7. Meanwhile in the TARDIS Part 1

**A/N Yes, I know this chapter is short, but it is important. I do not own either mediums, just Hope.**

"Trust Him?!" the Doctor exclaimed as he let the TARDIS doors slam for him. "Of all the irresponsible things to say! Hope needs medical attention, and He hasn't given it to her like He did the others. What is worse, He is dragging her through fixed points in time!"

The Doctor set the destination to orbit Earth before kicking the lower part of the console, causing the TARDIS to make a sound resembling a growl. The Doctor sighed. "Sorry, Old Girl. I put you through enough for today," he said as he flopped into the jumpseat. He got up again when he realized he was sitting on something else: Hope's Bible.

He stared at the book in his hands. "Why did I bring her here in the first place?" he mused. "I knew it was a fixed point in time, yet somehow the TARDIS was allowed to land here. Why?"

The Doctor closed his eyes and remembered the heartbroken look on Hope's face. "I didn't want to disappoint her again. Every planet I promised was peaceful wasn't. We never did meet Mr. Tolkien and Mr. Lewis in their book club. She never did try the incredibly rare ten cheese mac and cheese on the moons of Poosh. I set her up for disappointments."

The Doctor opened his eyes and clenched Hope's Bible, anger returning. "He better not disappoint her! I'll be watching..."

 **A/N In case anyone was wondering what the Doctor was up to, here it is. This idea of disappointment will be a driving factor throughout the story.**

 **This excerpt was going to be part of a longer chapter, but I didn't want to keep you all waiting.**

 **Review Responses:**

 **Bomborguy789: I'm glad to hear that there was some part of the story you liked. I may not be able to incorporate 'slice of life' into every scene, but I will try occasionally.**

 **chrissymama: I have not given up on this story. Most chapters require research which is why they take so long.**

 **Disney fan5: I am glad that I inspired you to continue your story. I can't wait to read it!**

 **giestklempner: I haven't decided how I will handle the 'end of days' question yet, or even if it will come up. If you have any ideas about it, please PM me.**

 **Please read and review!**


	8. Defilement Comes From Within

**A/N I do not own the rights to Doctor Who or the Bible. This chapter is inspired by Matt. 15:1-20 and Mark 7:1-23. Possible triggers toward the end of the chapter.**

Hope's stomach growled. She suspected it was lunchtime.

Jesus dried His tears and led the apostles outside with Hope hobbling behind. They went through the marketplace and sat down in a shaded area. The apostles brought along the basket of scraps, which they dug into.

 _Oh great. More barley._

"Here they come!" someone shouted.

Hope looked toward the marketplace where the shout came from. The vendors and customers alike stood straighter. Some vendors became more generous in their measurements. Others had fallen silent.

Then they came. They came in recently laundered robes. They came with scrolls tucked under their arms. Though their faces carried no proud look, the manner of the townspeople gave them pride.

Even Hope decided to hobble behind Jesus and His disciples. These looked similar to the man who called her out for her clothes a few days ago. (Was it really just a few days ago?)

The only person who seemed unfazed by their presence was Jesus. He seemed to be ignoring the newcomers in favor of eating His lunch. A few of the disciples glanced at Jesus and followed His lead.

Finally, the men who caused this shift in atmosphere reached Jesus' group.

One of them let their jaw drop. Another tsked.

"Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashed hands? For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread."

Hope stopped abruptly and looked down at her hands. _They're right! I didn't wash my hands!_

Hope pulled up herself with her walking stick with the intention of wandering the market for some soap or hand sanitizer. _Wait, no, they wouldn't have hand sanitizer in this time period. What would they have? Lye? Just water?_

Jesus shook His head sorrowfully. "Why do you also transgress the commandment of God because of your tradition? Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written:

 _'_ _This people honors Me with their lips,_

 _But their heart is far from Me._

 _And in vain do they worship Me,_

 _Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men'_

The people in the marketplace stopped pretending to go about their business in favor of listening to the rebuttal. Even Hope stopped her pursuit of something to wash with to listen.

Jesus answered and said to them, "For laying aside the commandment of God, you hold the tradition of men — the washing of pitchers and cups, and many other things you do."  
Jaws dropped. The woman in the stall closest to Hope whispered to her customer, "What is wrong with washing hands and cups? People are less likely to be sick this way."

The customer concurred, "He probably doesn't like the Pharisees and will say whatever He can against them."

Another customer butted in, "The Pharisees started it!"

Jesus continued with another example, "All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition. For Moses said 'Honor your father and your mother', and 'He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.' But you say, 'If a man says to his father or mother, "Whatever profit you might have received from me is Corban (a gift to God)"' then you no longer let him do anything for his father or his mother, making the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have handed down. And many such things you do."

Hope and the other onlookers stared at the Pharisees.

Jesus called all the listeners to him and sighed, "Hear and understand: Not what goes into the mouth defiles a man; but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man. If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear!"

The Pharisees glared. Some huffed. One by one, they pushed through the crowd and continued through town. The last one to leave looked downcast, mumbling, "I thought we were doing right…," before being called by his friends to leave.

Some of the crowd followed the Pharisees while the rest went back to their business of buying, selling, and getting cheated out of goods now that the Pharisees were gone.

Judas tapped Jesus on the shoulder. "May we talk to you privately?"

Jesus looked up at him with His mouth full and nodded. After swallowing the bite of bread, Jesus had everyone follow Him (with the basket) to an empty house. Hope hobbled behind.

In the house, the disciples set the basket down in a corner. Hope snuck over to grab a piece of barley bread (it's better than nothing to eat) and slid down the wall to sit and watch.

Judas started, "Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this saying?"

But He answered and said, "Every plant which My heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted. Let them alone. They are blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch."

Hope kept grabbing bread out of the basket like it was popcorn, the taste mostly ignored.

Then Peter answered and said to Him, "Explain this parable to us."

Jesus turned and looked at all the questioning looks on His disciples' faces, a little heartbroken, it seemed to Hope. Jesus said, "Are you also without understanding? Do you not yet understand that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and is eliminated? But those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness. These are the things which defile a man, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile a man."

Hope stopped munching and looked at her hands. She never did get them washed. She sighed. _I guess it doesn't matter right now._

Some of the disciples nodded with understanding. A few recovered from their blank faces and shrugged.

Hope and Jesus shared the same thought: _They will all understand eventually._

 **A/N Thank you for your patience! Your follows and reviews really encouraged me to get back to it. That and the constant power flickering I've been having here has encouraged me to use a program that doesn't require internet, namely Notes where I've been typing this story. I'm posting while the power/Wifi is on (obviously).**

 **I figured there might be some triggers in here about some things Jesus said. If you have complaints about that, take it up with Him. I am just quoting what He said. If you have comments/complaints about how I tell this story, feel free to review and/or PM me.**

 **Review Responses:**

 **MyladyNancy: You're welcome! Easter is a great time to read through stories such as these! The Bible is for everyday reading, though. I hope you are!**


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